I assembled the strongest swordsman group.

Saito Hajime, who was extremely adept at seizing opportunities in battle, would naturally not let go of this potentially fatal flaw.

He aimed at Todo Heisuke's waist and abdomen—raised his sword, and slashed down—all in one swift motion.

Unexpectedly, Todo Heisuke displayed extraordinary reaction speed at this moment!

He twisted his body with difficulty, turning what would have been a fatal wound that would have killed him on the spot into a minor injury to his chest.

At the same time, he swung the knife in his hand, the blade sweeping upwards through the air and landing on Saito Hajime's left shoulder, leaving a shallow wound.

Saito paused, glancing sideways at the wound on his left shoulder where blood was seeping out... When he looked back at Todo Heisuke, he saw that the lines of his face were tense, and a terrifying shadow appeared.

Seeing this, Todo Heisuke understood—he was about to force Saito Hajime to reveal his true abilities.

Next, he will face the real Saito Hajime!

For some reason, he didn't feel nervous at all; instead, he smiled and a smile appeared on his lips.

Just like Ito Kashitaro, he never defeated Saito Hajime.

The gap in strength between him and Saito Hajime cannot be bridged by willpower alone.

However, perhaps because he was prepared to die, he now felt incredibly light in his body!

There's nothing to be afraid of anymore!

Sure enough, in that instant, Saito Hajime's aura changed drastically, becoming more reserved and unfathomable!

call out!

The high-speed swing of Setsuju Ikeda Onijimaru Kunishige cut off the moonlight streaming in from the window, causing the air to roar!

When Saito Hajime unleashed his true abilities, Todo Heisuke immediately felt a surge of pressure!

Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!

Saito Hajime's attacks were extremely fierce, one slash after another, relentlessly, as if he were wielding eight swords at the same time, making one wonder whether he was a swordsman of the Mugae-ryu school or the Shinto Munen-ryu school.

At first, Todo Heisuke was able to manage.

But gradually, he struggled more and more, and could only parry, without the ability to fight back.

The more he tried to retaliate, the more passive he became.

Although Todo Heisuke felt anxious, he remained calm.

While struggling against Saito Hajime, he subtly shifted his position.

He had moved to the east side of the room and was leaning against the paper sliding door on the east side.

The room where classes were held at the "Ito Juku" was located on the first floor of the Ito residence. By simply opening the paper sliding door on the east side, one could see the clean veranda and the spacious courtyard.

His plan was simple—to force Saito Hajime to retreat, then take the opportunity to turn around, smash through the paper sliding door behind him, escape to the courtyard, and then flee far away!

The plan sounds simple, but the very first step—"finding a way to force Saito Hajime to retreat"—raises serious doubts about its feasibility.

—Tsk, there's no other way...

Heisuke Todo had already made up his mind and secretly decided on his course of action.

clang!

In the instant he parried the opponent's slash again... it really was a split second! Toudou Heisuke transferred the sword in his hand to his left hand, freeing his right hand to swiftly draw the wakizashi from his left waist, and then threw it out like a hidden weapon!

The wakizashi drew a straight line in mid-air and pierced Saito Hajime's chest!

Throwing away the sword at his waist—for Todo Heisuke, who valued samurai honor, this was hardly a commendable thing to do.

He really didn't want to use this tactic if he wasn't forced by circumstances.

He didn't expect to kill Saito Hajime with this move.

That would be enough if Saito Hajime could be so surprised that he would reveal his weakness!

However... he never expected that Saito had seen through his intentions long ago.

At almost the same instant that Heisuke Todo threw the wakizashi, Kazuya Saito switched the sword in his hand to one hand, then used his other hand to draw the wakizashi from his waist and throw it out!

Ding!

With a piercing clang, the two wakizashi collided head-on, sparking dazzling sparks.

The unexpected scene stunned Todo Heisuke—it was this momentary lapse in concentration that sealed his defeat.

Whoosh!

Saito Kazuya moved like a ghost, sneaking up on Toudou Heisuke.

The sword moves in an instant—the steel blade in Saito's hand made a loud noise!

clang!!

Saito Hajime's horizontal slash could easily cut Todo Heisuke in two.

Fortunately, at this critical moment, Todo Heisuke pulled Kazusa Sukeshige to his chest, narrowly blocking the attack and averting disaster.

Even so, the immense force transmitted through the blade could not be completely neutralized.

Then Todo Heisuke flew backward like a cannonball, crashing through the paper sliding door behind him, crossing the veranda, and then landing heavily in the courtyard outside the room, kicking up a cloud of dust.

The force of his fall was considerable.

Fortunately, just before landing, Todo Heisuke instinctively braced himself, minimizing the damage from the fall; otherwise, he would have broken one or two bones.

However, he still suffered a great deal of pain.

"Haa...haa...haa...haa..."

An indescribable, intense pain spread throughout his body, almost causing him to lose consciousness and nearly lose his breath.

He greedily took deep breaths until his lungs were full of oxygen again, and only then did he finally feel the blood in his body flow again.

Despite the pain that nearly made him faint, his long-cultivated fighting instincts made his body move on its own.

He struggled to sit up... Suddenly, a flash of cold light appeared—Saito Hajime appeared in front of him at some point, holding a knife in one hand, the sharp tip of the blade pointed at his neck.

Heisuke Todo looked up along the blade and saw Saito looking down at him, his eyes radiating a cold light the same color as the blade.

"How could you possibly beat me... you idiot."

It's unclear whether these words were sarcastic or expressed regret.

"..."

Todo Heisuke pursed his lips, stared directly into Saito's eyes, and then... said nothing.

Although he didn't speak, his resolute expression clearly showed his determination: Enough with the nonsense, let's get started!

But at this moment—

"Saito-kun, wait a moment."

Suddenly, Ito Kashitaro's voice came from behind Saito Hajime.

Ito Kashitaro slowly stepped forward and stood in front of Saito Hajime, closer to Todo Heisuke.

Saito glanced at Ito Kashitaro, then quietly put down his sword and retreated a short distance away.

They stared at each other intently again, but this time it was the master and apprentice staring at each other.

Todo Heisuke remained silent... He had nothing more to say to Ito Kashitaro.

On one side is a speechless silence, on the other is a calm, rambling monologue—

"Heisuke, you are one of my most outstanding disciples... This is my honest opinion, without any falsehood."

The tone was utterly devoid of emotion... as if speaking of something insignificant and unrelated to oneself...

"Although we are now forced to fight each other, my feelings for you will not change."

"So... I'll see you off."

Having said that, he drew the sword from his waist.

The blinding blade light pierced Todo Heisuke's eyes.

"Heisuke, do you have a death poem?"

Heisuke Todo gave a cold laugh and finally spoke:

"Let's get started."

Ito Kashitaro lowered his eyelids slightly, said nothing more, and slowly raised his sword above his head—

"Who?!"

The sudden outburst caught everyone present off guard.

The one who shouted was Kondo Isami, who remained inside the room.

The instant he finished shouting, Kondo Isami drew his sword with lightning speed, leaped up, and crashed into the ceiling above him, sword and all.

The fragile ceiling couldn't withstand his powerful blow and shattered into pieces, sending dust billowing everywhere.

Even Ito Kashitaro couldn't help but be distracted by this strange change.

Although it was fleeting, the moment of turning the tide unfolded right before Todo Heisuke's eyes!

But then Toudou Heisuke frowned, his eyes gleaming, and suddenly threw the object in his left hand—a handful of dirt he had secretly grabbed from the ground—at Ito Kashitaro in front of him.

Distracted, Ito Kashitaro couldn't dodge in time and was hit in the face with a handful of dirt.

Although he instinctively swung his sword down, Todo Heisuke had already escaped from its grasp.

He moved with the agility of an eel, first rolling over to get out of Ito Kashitaro's slashing range, then pouncing on the nearby wall like a monkey, quickly vaulting over it and escaping outside the house!

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Chapter 1112 "I will take away Tachibana Seiden's power!" [5000 words]

From having mud smeared on their faces to escaping by scaling the wall, everything happened in the blink of an eye.